Westport, NZ

“Waves are not measured in feet or inches, they are measured in increments of fear.”

Buzzy Trent

Buller Gorge Swingbridge

Swing bridges appear frequently in New Zealand, particularly on hiking tracks. I typically lose my balance wandering across, especially in the middle where the bridge swings more. Getting off, sometimes I feel the ground underneath me still shaking like how I imagine an earthquake would feel. Leaving Nelson, I stopped by the Buller Gorge area to walk across New Zealand’s longest swing bridge.

This bridge is 110 meters (360 ft) long. I was actually anxious in the middle, and very careful when taking pictures to make sure I didn’t drop my camera or the lens cap. Next to the swing bridge was a zip line for a fun way to get across the river. I told myself I would not spend money that day, but as I was leaving the park, the guy working the zip line convinced me I needed to ride across. Not only that, but you could lay down while riding the zipline, called the “Supaman,” which I decided to do.

It was a bit nerve racking running off the platform and jumping face first into the gorge, but I did so and flew across in joy. I can’t help but scream every time I fall in some fashion, but I still felt like a superhero nonetheless.

Charming Creek Walkway

I was intrigued by a hostel that offered surfing lessons, so that is where I booked my next accommodation, in a town called Westport. Prior to arriving to the hostel, I enjoyed a walk along an old railroad track turned into a hiking path, called Charming Creek Walkway.

I had a pleasant walk through the forest, along a river, with no one around almost the entire time I was there. I walked through a couple caves and eventually reached a waterfall after crossing a swing bridge.

At the hostel that night, I signed up for the surfing lesson that would commence the next morning at 7:30. I have never tried surfing before, but this seemed like the perfect place to experience something new. I am terrible at skateboarding and snowboarding, but I was hoping the water might be more gentle on my body when falling. 

I learned the secret to making friends that evening; alcohol. Okay, not really a secret, but you can find really cheap bottles of wine (around 5 USD/bottle), and I feel like an alcoholic drinking alone. I approached some people enjoying their dinner and shared my wine with them. I enjoyed laughing and chatting with this group and some of them were going surfing the next morning (not part of the lesson though). This hostel, in addition to the lessons, takes a group of people twice a day to surf at the nearby beach. I was excited to try it!

Surfing

Unfortunately, since I was the only newcomer to this hostel that signed up for a surf lesson, it was cancelled. The group of non-lesson surfers were still going to the beach, including my new friends from the previous night, so I decided to go anyway. They assured me I did not need a lesson, and they would just tell me what they had learned during their lesson.

We were supposed to leave to go surfing at 8 in the morning, but we weren’t on the road until 9. There had been some technical difficulties getting the surfboards and wetsuits organized for the group of 10 or so of us, and things seemed a bit disorganized. But eventually we made it to the beach. There was a surfing competition going on that day, so we were told to just stay to the far right side of the beach and not interfere with the pros. 

I learned that carrying a large surfboard is rather difficult, and my arms felt sore after about 20 minutes of walking alongside the beach with the board. My buddies gave me some tips on how to surf, and it all sounded so easy, but I knew it would be a struggle. The frequent surfers swam out to deeper water while us beginners stayed close to the beach where we could stand most of the time and rode the waves by the beach. As each wave approached me, I felt nervous and kept thinking to myself, “I’ll get the next one, I’ll get the next one..” Finally, I took the chance and jumped on the board, trying to balance. This proved to be a struggle with the wobbly board and my lack of coordination. After a number of tries, I was able to lay on my stomach without slipping off.

After gaining balance, the next step is to face the direction that the wave is moving, i.e. the beach, and paddle with your arms as fast as you can so you are moving at a decent speed when the wave picks you up. Then at an appropriate time, you try to stand and ride the wave. Sounds easy, right? Nope, it was so difficult for me to stand on the board, or even sit up on it, while riding the wave. You are moving quickly, and standing without falling is quite difficult. I was never able to actually stand up whilst riding a wave, as I kept falling over.

That being said though, I loved trying and failing; I understand why people are obsessed with surfing. Just riding the waves while laying or sitting up is an amazing, freeing feeling, as if you are flying and swimming at the same time. The water is also much softer than falling on snow or cement. That being said, I always find a way to hurt myself doing any activity. During one unfortunate slip, my board whipped back around and smacked me across the nose when I came up for air. I felt a sharp stab of pain, followed by the sight of my blood surrounding me. My nose was bleeding profusely and not stopping any time soon, so I swam to shore. One of the surfers noticed me sitting on the beach, and swam over to sit with me. As she approached and saw the blood, her face became concerned, but I assured her I was okay. I just wanted to know if my nose looked crooked, and luckily, she said no. My confidence was a bit shattered after that and I was more cautious going forward.

Despite my injuries, it was one hell of a morning and I had a blast attempting to surf. I definitely understand the appeal of surfing now, and I would go on vacation somewhere just to surf in the future. My goal in life now is to be able to stand on a surfboard while riding a wave.

Frugal Living

That evening, I went grocery shopping with three new friends I met at the hostel and we cooked dinner together. Or rather, while I was distracted by another couple I met, the other three cooked dinner. I was just on a roll of meeting interesting people; I couldn’t walk away from a conversation! My friends I enjoyed dinner with were all much younger than me, fresh graduates from high school, who were traveling long term. I meet young people frequently who normally save enough money to buy a plane ticket to New Zealand, and then travel around the country on working holiday visas. Many low wage jobs in touristy towns are held by travelers, such as in cafes and hostels. Working in a hostel means free accommodation, and then some will hold down small jobs in the afternoon. To really save money, many hitch hike around the country, and participate in free activities, or the cheapest ones, such as hiking trips. In this particular hostel, the workers got to surf for free, as well as any guests that stayed for five nights or more.

A great way to save money is by making friends and cooking together. My dinner that evening was roughly equivalent to 2 USD, once we split it up. Many travelers don’t eat meat as it’s too expensive and stick to pasta, rice, bread, peanut butter, and fried vegetables. Often times, people at hostels cook too much food and will give the rest away to whoever wants it, another way to dine cheaply. This happened to me once, and I didn’t want to store my food overnight so I gave it to a girl who had not eaten dinner yet. And of course, people who buy alcohol, such as myself, usually want to share it. Basically what I learned is that travel can be as cheap and as expensive as you make it to be. I’ve saved up a bit more money than the average high school graduate, but I still try to live as frugally as possible while I travel.

Cape Foulwind

In the morning, I enjoyed breakfast with the couple that slept in my room the previous night, an Irish guy and Slovakian girl, and they were so fun to spend time with. They had met while traveling the previous year, hit it off, and now have been working and traveling together for over a year. They were great together, and had lots of fun stories to share. Having visited so many places, they gave me lots of ideas of where to visit in this upcoming year.

Together we drove to a spot near the surfing location from the previous day, where a seal colony resided. There were dozens of them to be seen, including baby seals! Everybody was mesmerized watching these cute animals wobble around.

I had met so many fun people during my time in Westport and did not want to leave, but I had to make my way south for a long hike I booked months ago, so I left town with lots of great memories. There was still much to see on the West Coast, so it was on to the next adventure!

-Anastasia